Objective
Sonics: Plain and simple, does the album sound good. How complex are the rhyme schemes, lyrics, or story? Is it conveyed in a way that the reader can digest without looking at outside sources? Does the album sacrifice polish for the sake of experimentation? How does the album compare to other albums?
Cohesiveness: Are the tracks ordered in a way that makes sense? If the album is trying to tell a story, are the chapters of the story in order? Is the message of the album delivered well, and if there is no message, is the point of the album clear and delivered?
Lyrical Depth/Implementation: How much meaning and emotion is conveyed in the album? How does deeper lyrical meaning strengthen or weaken the track or album? Does more depth equal a better song, if some of that depth gets lost in the music?
Mixing and Mastering: How clear is each part of the song? Can I pick out parts of the song I like, such as certain chords, melodies, ad libs, vocals, etc? Do the vocals and the actual music clash, or are they mixed in a way where they harmonize?
Thematic Impact: How well is the message of the album received? I.e. if you are looking at Playboi Carti’s 2020 album Whole Lotta Red, how well does Carti convey the synth infused rage rap fun into each of his songs? Album promotion, rollout, themes, artwork, track names, album name are all taken into account here. Simply put, how much feeling do you get from listening to this work of art.
Subjective
Enjoyment: How much did I enjoy the album as a whole? Was it fun? Boring? Inspiring? Was I craving more or dying to turn it off?
Replay value: How much do I see this being spun back in 3 months? 6? A year? A few years? Will I be able to listen to this often without getting sick of it?
Album cover: How creative, cool, and sensible is the album cover? How does it tie the album together? Does it work with the theme of the album?
Track names: Do the track names fit with the content of the song? Do they fit with the theme of the album?
Album name: How does the name encompass the album as a whole? Does it fit? Does it make sense for what the album is trying to put forth?
Each album will receive a subjective score, and an objective score based on a value of 0-10. These will add up to a total of 0-50 for both categories. Finally, the album will be assigned a final Blackbeard score, which will be my final rating for the album. These reviews are merely my opinion, and should not be accepted as fact. While I will back up my analysis with examples from the music, art is highly subjective.
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